The US government has suspended Microsoft, Adobe and major IT outsourcing firms from a key green-card program while launching probes into nine top universities also marking a major crackdown on skilled-worker immigration.
Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling announced Thursday that the government will pause all new and pending permanent labor certification (PERM) applications for Microsoft and major IT outsourcers including Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, HCL Technologies, Cognizant and Capgemini. PERM certification is a critical step for foreign workers seeking employment-based green cards.
Vice President JD Vance accused companies of abusing the system to hire lower-paid foreign workers over Americans. "There has been no company in the United States that has abused the system more than Microsoft" Vance said, noting the company laid off 6,000 American workers last year while receiving thousands of H-1B visas and green cards.
Microsoft countered that about 80 percent of its recent H-1B filings were extensions for existing staff and maintained that it pays foreign employees on par with domestic peers.
Concurrently, the administration opened investigations into nine elite universities including Harvard, Yale, Stanford, MIT and Brown over alleged misuse of exchange-visitor visas to undercut American wages. Labor Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito confirmed subpoenas were issued to examine whether foreign influence or visa abuses compromised federally funded research.
Education advocates warned the restrictions could cause severe economic damage also noting that international students historically contribute $40 billion annually to the US economy.
